Adam Voigt - Learning environment

Adam Voigt

Learning environment

Adam is a real leader who walks the talk. His speaking offerings are filled with stories, messages, tools and hope developed from years of successful School Leadership as a Principal in some of Australia’s most challenging locations. Adam is a leader & speaker who has genuinely ‘been there and done that’.

Adam is now taking his message about schools and leadership to a new level and also providing high quality interactive training for School Leaders and Teachers through Real Schools. And further he transforms businesses, companies, teams and organisations through Real Learners.

Adam’s speaking and programs have taken him across Australia and internationally. Just some of his achievements include:

being featured on Channel 7’s Sunrise program as a Bullying Expert

presenting a TED Talk at the inaugural TEDx Darwin event

winning his first Principal position at only 35 years of age.

presenting on School Culture at the 2012 ACEL Conference in Brisbane

opening a brand new Northern Territory school as it’s inaugural Principal.

speaking at International Conferences about developing successful school cultures in Singapore and then also more recently – in Kazakhstan.

Adam is now connecting with leaders and educators locally and internationally with bias for long-term Partnerships that sustain change. His determination to impact and empower all leaders with this message is endless and this shines through each and every presentation.

He has a passion for empowering as many dedicated leaders and educators as possible with the tools, skills and attitudes necessary to build meaningful, productive relationships wherever they are. And for these relationships to be leveraged for a new level of performance and leadership potential.

Every great work, every major achievement, has been brought into being through holding the vision, and often just before the big achievement, comes apparent failure and disappointment, for the greatest achievement in life is not in ever failing but rising again when you fall.

— - Florence Scovel Shinn

Show Notes

His Story – Adam Voigt

Adam Voigt fell into teaching. He admits following the path of his friends to the profession, but finding a deep passion for learning when he was thrust into the classroom. He has become obsessed with not only delivering information and adding academic value, but also changing the direction of people’s lives.

He became a school principal at just 35 years old. Raw, enthusiastic and ambitious, Adam describes the opportunity to turn lives around from abuse and disadvantage to be incredibly powerful and extremely valuable. He learnt a lot about what you do in the learning environment and how you do it. Specifically, how to leverage connections and relationships to immerse knowledge and cultivate influence through your actions.

Throughout the episode, Adam’s candid and authentic approach to what he does is notable. He doesn’t measure his success on the volume of the applause he receives, but the success he delivers going forward. He founded Real Schools to cultivate a collaborative and cohesive culture in schools, and help them become clear about their strategy in the midst of change. He reflects this in his business model: three year partnerships in working with parents, training programs for teachers, written and video resources and an ongoing implementation plan.

In doing this, Adam is realistic about the future of education and the challenges currently facing the sector. He recognises the need to respond to the greater access to content brought about by the Internet, heightening the need filter the plethora of resources available to us.

Nowadays, he also brings his understanding from the education sector to the corporate sector. He founded Real Learners, assisting his clients to create competitive advantage and understanding the movement of market forces in forging their organisational behaviour. Crucially, Adam recognises the need to enforce strategy development and make it stick in our fluid and dynamic world.

Advice for Others – Adam Voigt

Throughout his career, Adam has encountered the difficulty of challenging the way people teach and learn. Often a difficult conversation to have and an intricate relationship to manage, he advises to be both patient and gentle but also persistent and brave. This balance will help to cultivate connection and drive for progress, ultimately building recognition and respect.

He also feels it is key for individuals to back themselves. Be prepared to do things different and be comfortable with the uncomfortable. Listen less to the people who wish you well and take note of those with critiques, suggestions and support. He notes that there are so many talented and enthusiastic people, in whatever field we’re in, but we can’t change anything if we aren’t prolific enough.

Book Recommendations – Adam Voigt

The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail by Clayton Christensen

Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns by Clayton Christensen, Curtis Johnson and Michael Horn

Quotes – Adam Voigt

“Every great work, every major achievement, has been brought into being through holding the vision, and often just before the big achievement, comes apparent failure and disappointment, for the greatest achievement in life is not in ever failing but rising again when you fall.” - Florence Scovel Shinn

Contacting Adam Voigt

Check out Real Learners (reallearners.com.au) and Real Schools (realschools.com.au) and reach out to Adam via the following platforms: